DVD Review: Bellydance Hip Hop Liquid Fusion with Anasma

Okay, I admit it… I love dubstep. And I love the new fusion of belly dance and hip hop which is often performed to dubstep music. When I saw this video I knew I had to get my hands on a copy. Fortunately the DVD publisher, World Dance New York, was willing to send me one to review for free. It’s probably one of the coolest fusion videos I’ve seen… ever! Seriously.

The Best Thing About this DVD: is the program itself. Anasma has created something that is uniquely a true synthesis of two styles. Every move is at the same time both belly dance and hip hop. The fusion carries through to her costuming, music, and her expressions, as well. It’s modern and fresh but still true to the origins of both forms. If you’re familiar with Anasma’s work, you know that this is her specialty. It’s also pretty rare. I often see the label of “fusion” describe routines that are just non-traditional. The dancer picks and chooses moves from different genres, but there is no true blending. You definitely won’t find that here.

Other Things I Like:

There’s a lot of content- two disks and over four hours worth of content. You get an explanation and drill set for both the belly dance and the hip hop moves, plus a choreography, and some performance footage.

The belly dance drills are good enough to stand alone. You could pick up a few nice combinations even if you never use the hip hop section.

The choreography is really cute! It’s a wonderful synthesis of the information that’s covered and good enough to be performed at a fusion themed venue.

The DVD production values are very good. The lighting and videography are appropriate, and it’s easy to find what you need through the DVD menus.

Be Warned: Although it’s not clearly stated in the description, this DVD is probably best suited for intermediate and advanced level dancers. You will need a good understanding of the mechanics of movement, from either a background in belly dancing or hip hop, for the choreography. There’s really only enough time for Anasma to breeze through the breakdown of each movement, and not enough explanation is given for beginning dancers.

To Summarize: This is a wonderful resource for experienced dancers interested in expanding their realm of experience across different genres. Even if you’re not interested specifically in hip hop, there’s a valuable lesson here as to what a true fusion of styles looks and feels like. The quality of the content and the instruction is excellent.

And there’s a part 2! Check out Wave Explosion, the sequel to this DVD.

Interested? I’m giving away both DVDs in the series. Stay tuned for my next post. 🙂